Friday September 30, 2011

According to best guesstimates, Amazon's $199 Kindle Fire costs $209.63 to make. That sounds about right, sell it at a slight loss so you can rake it in selling content for the device.

Research firm IHS offers a rundown of the device's components on its site. Materials for the Kindle Fire, which retails for $199, cost $191.65, but with factory expenses, that comes to $209.63. However, despite the apparent loss, IHS estimates that Amazon is "likely to generate a marginal profit of $10" on each Kindle Fire sold, when you take into account sales of digital content with the device.